Prince Charming
by Eternity1
Summary: Companion piece to 'Cinderella'


Title: Prince Charming  
Author: Eternity  
Rating : G/PG  
Spoilers : None  
Summary: Alex finds a depressed Maria walking down the streets of Roswell.  
  
  
  
Alex drove slowly down the dark streets of Roswell, his mind a million   
places at once. Right now she would be with him, she would be laughing at   
his jokes, touching his arm gently, or his leg. Looking into his eyes and   
whispering secrets only lovers shared. Maybe she would feed him food from   
her fingertips and he would delight on delicacies from hers.  
  
Stop torturing yourself he ordered himself sternly and silently, you've always known nothing would happen between the two of you, you've lived through other dates, other long   
nights of desperately wishing you were the one she was with, wanting to be   
the one she kissed goodnight. The one that could rub her hair gently and   
tell her how lovely she looked, how her hair shone like gold and her eyes   
like precious gems.   
  
A sight jerked him roughly from his thoughts, he hit the brakes and checked   
once more to make sure what he was seeing was right. It was her, yes, it was   
definitely her. After the initial moment of excitement passed, pain filled   
it. She was leaning up against a parking meter for support, one shoe missing   
and she was trying to keep the weight off that bare, slippered foot. Her   
shoulders were slumped and dejected and he wanted to cry for her, cry for   
the pain his love was obviously in.  
  
He parked the car quickly and carelessly, and jumped out. He called her name   
tentatively. "Maria?" She twitched a little in response but didn't answer.   
He repeated himself, getting a little closer. "Maria?"  
  
"Hey, Alex." She responded, her head still turned away from him. He willed   
her to turn and look at him to no avail.  
  
"What's wrong? I thought you were supposed to be out tonight," he asked, his   
voice sounded confused to his own ears but in reality he already knew what   
had happened.  
  
"There was a change of plans I guess," she told him, as he walked around to   
face her and he could tell she was trying to sound more lighthearted than   
she actually was. When he was finally facing her, he tilted her face up to   
meet his, he could have cried at the pain he saw in her eyes, would have   
done anything to take it away.  
  
"And let me guess, he didn't tell you." Alex said, already knowing the   
answer. He slipped his hand inside his sleeve and raised it to wipe the   
tears from her cheeks, wishing he could wipe away all the torment in her   
heart as well. Almost automatically he told her to blow into his sleeve, not   
caring in the slightest when she did.  
  
"I just, I thought it would be different." She said quietly, and Alex could   
feel a rage building up inside of him, rage that anyone would hurt her, that   
anyone would dare to bruise her heart. That bastard, he thought viciously in   
his mind, he did it again. He hurt her again, I warned him! Alex thought, I   
told him to be careful with her, why did he have to do it? Why couldn't he   
just have let her go gently, why did he have to do this to her tonight of   
all nights? Her beautiful fairy-tale night, this was supposed to be her   
perfect night. I'm going to kill him, Alex thought.  
  
"I know you did," he said. He tried to sound neutral but knew that she had   
caught onto his anger when he saw the confusion in her eyes. "Do you want me   
to take you home?" He asked, concentrating on her and not the one who had   
made her cry, again.  
  
"Yeah." She said and he helped her to the car, treating her like the precious   
being that she was to him, tucking her into the car safely and putting her   
seat belt on. Making sure that she would at least be safe with him, that she   
would not get hurt with him. He kept the music gentle and the driving slow,   
not wanting to shake her up, she was usually so strong but he knew that   
tonight was her weakest of times, feeling deserted and betrayed again. He   
had wanted to carry her up the stairs, wanting to spare her any additional   
pain, but he knew she wanted to retain at least some dignity. He stopped at   
the front door, wanting to tell her how beautiful she still looked to him,   
how beautiful her hands were as they searched for her keys. Wanting to say   
how lovely her hair was, cascading down from a loose knot on her head, how   
the dress made her look like a princess but he said none of these   
things, finding his courage had deserted him. He turned to go, but then she looked up   
and he couldn't help it. His hand went behind her head, cradling it gently   
and his lips met hers, he could have kissed her forever. Lost in the beauty   
of finally touching her, finally feeling her lips on his, reveling in the   
feelings that swept through him, but he let go, and kissed her gently on the   
forehead, unable to not touch her one last time.  
  
"Happy Birthday Maria," he whispered his voice almost cracking with emotion.   
Then he turned and ran down the steps, suddenly horrified at what he had   
done. He jumped in his car and drove away, ranting in his mind, he had   
ruined everything. He had taken advantage of her at her weakest moment, he   
had probably just ruined their friendship. Why, why did he have to give in,  
why couldn't he have just told her good-bye. "Oh, Maria," he whispered his   
breaking heart showing through with every tone in his voice, though he knew   
she could not hear him. "I'm sorry, please don't hate me." He drove on, not   
realizing that he had made his princess feel like an angel with one touch,   
that he had made right an entire night, perhaps years of feeling rejected   
with a single act of love. Not knowing that that single, beautiful kiss had   
been something she had been dreaming of too, just never knowing that her   
dream was him.  
  
  



End file.
